


Time Stops When I'm With You

by vixx_3



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/M, Miraculous Holder Nino, Nino's POV, Soulmates, Time Shenanigans, Timey Wimey Bullshit, characters are like 18-19, only for the first chapter to set everything up, op cant tag, theres no better tag for it im sorry
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-02
Updated: 2018-05-02
Packaged: 2019-05-01 02:58:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14511036
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vixx_3/pseuds/vixx_3
Summary: Nino, Wayzz, and Master Fu decide that Ladybug and Chat Noir would be a much more formidable force if given the time to grow closer and reveal themselves. Impatient and cautious of Hawkmoth, the trio decides to make time instead of finding it.The Turtle Miraculous is one of patience, defense, and time. But that last part is really only for special occasions. Lucky for Nino, this might just be one of those times.Marinette and Adrien are given the privacy of plenty of time all to themselves. What they make of it is hard to predict.





	Time Stops When I'm With You

**Author's Note:**

> based off of the prompt embedded in the link at the end of the story, since i don't know how to embed notes in links.  
> so its a time stopping au! i saw this prompt and immediately thought, "thats something that nino would do" and it seems to be working out, fingers crossed!  
> this is my very first time writing nino, and it is also an unedited and unbeta'd story, so please be kind with your criticism, but definitely do not hold back from telling me what you think!

          Soulmates are tricky. In all his learning with Master Fu, that was the one concept Nino struggled to grasp. How was it possible that two people might share the same core energy, how could they be two halves of one whole? How did it happen? What did it mean?

          Master Fu, as always, fielded his questions effortlessly. He explained, once again, that soulmates are two people that each have half of the same soul.

          “It is by the rule of the universe that these two people will always come together, Nino. And once they do, their power becomes unimaginably strong. They become a sort of catalyst for magic, so long as they stay in balance. Be it romantic or platonic, or even antagonistic, they must practice perfect harmony or risk destroying themselves. Often times it takes an outside party to help them achieve that balance. That is where you come in.”

          Nino, who had been listening thoughtfully, jumped at this. “Me?” he asked, pointing a shaky finger at himself, then waving both hands around. “What do I have to do with soulmates?”

          Master Fu smiled. “You possess the Turtle Miraculous, whose powers are of patience, defense, and time.”

          “Time?” Master Fu has been steadily teaching him patience (a difficult feat) and defense (much easier), but he had never before mentioned any powers of time.

          “Yes, time. It is not the primary purpose of Wayzz’s power, but in the right circumstance can be quite useful.”

          Skeptical, Nino raised one brow. “And we’re experiencing those circumstances right now?”

          Wayzz set down his Kwami-sized teacup and floated to eye level, taking it upon himself to explain. “We could be. Hawkmoth is a villain that will be difficult to defeat at our team’s current capabilities. Master Fu and I thought you would be enough to tip the balance, but we seem to have simply enraged our enemy.”

          “Gee, thanks.”

          Wayzz levelled him with a glare before continuing. He was not fond of interruptions. “But that is by no fault of your own. It is, instead, a problem centered around Chat Noir and Ladybug. They know your identity, but not each other’s. And you do not know theirs. We believe that if they were to reveal themselves and grow closer, their powers would grow in strength enough to defeat Hawkmoth.”

          Scratching his head, Nino started, “But what does this have to do with time and soulmates?”

          Ever patient, Master Fu responded, “The Black Cat and Ladybug Miraculouses are not always, but often, two halves of a whole. We have not seen such a perfect pair of soulmates in centuries. Many live across the world from one another and never meet, or are on opposite sides of a conflict. Ladybug and Chat Noir are ideal soulmates, and that revelation may speed them along in their growth.”

          Groaning, Nino collapsed backwards. “How did I not see that coming? Those two are perfect for each other. Of course they’re soulmates. Wait, how do you know this?” He sat up quickly, pointing an accusatory finger at Master Fu, who raised his hands in surrender.

          “I held the Turtle Miraculous for centuries. In that time, I learned to sense people’s energies, as you soon will. Ladybug and Chat Noir could not be less subtle in that they are meant to be.” Master Fu said this with a fond smile, drawing a giggle out of Nino and Wayzz.

          “Alright,” Nino said, grin falling as he concentrated again. “So what does this have to do with my apparent time powers?”

          Wayzz piped up once more. “Soulmates’ energy is a catalyst for strong magic. While time is a difficult thing to command, the strength of this pair may allow you to completely freeze time for everyone but your teammates and yourself, as the ones directly involved with the magic. Everything else, across the globe, will freeze. Even other Miraculous holders will not be immune.”

          Nino stared at him, jaw dropped. “You’re kidding. Isn’t that, like, an insane amount of magic?”

          Master Fu shook his head. “It is actually rather simple, especially compared to, say, reversing or advancing time. It is, in fact, easier to do this on a universal scale than an individual one, though we can teach you that as well.”

          “Let’s just… Focus on this, for now.” Nino requested, shaking his head in disbelief then stilling with a sigh and meeting Master Fu’s eyes, steely determination filling his gaze. “How do I do it?”

          Master Fu and Wayzz shared a smile before the elderly man responded. “That is the tricky part. You will have to be in contact with both of them, but I would advise you do not reveal that you are doing the magic. They could force you to reverse it in that case. It is best to leave them to themselves.”

          “So, what, I have to pretend to be frozen?”

          Wayzz nodded. “No breathing, no moving. Just until they leave to investigate, as they most likely will. Then you are free to move about as you please.”

          Nino sighed. “No breathing. Got it.”

* * *

          A few weeks of training passed, interspersed with Akuma attacks and homework and projects and DJ gigs and spending time with Adrien and more training and more Akumas and wow, he really was overbooked. Nino accredited the fact that he was still alive to his Miraculous, and didn’t question it. He kept working at his own pace until Master Fu deemed him ready to play with the fabric of time.

          “At your nearest opportunity, Nino,” the elderly man told him, “We must unite your friends as soon as possible. I fear that Hawkmoth is growing impatient in his quest for the Miraculous. You are ready, simply do as you were taught and let them come together in their own time.”

          He chuckled at his own joke, drawing a nervous giggle from Nino at the same time. A cup of tea and some consoling of worries later, Nino was out the door and on his way home. Unfortunately, his “nearest opportunity” was barely an hour later, on a scheduled patrol with Ladybug and Chat. They met up at the Eiffel Tower as usual, but Nino caught them before they could part ways. Adrien always told him he was a sap, so best make that an advantage, right?

          “Wait!”

          Ladybug caught Chat’s arm just before his boots left the platform, both heroes turning toward him as he approached, sheepish.

          “Everything okay, Carapace?” Chat asked, and wow Nino felt awful for what he was about to do. Look at that pure expression! So innocent and sweet! So useless around Ladybug! ...He took it back, this was for the best.

          Subtly taking in a breath, Carapace closed the distance between him and his teammates, drawing them both in for a hug and closing his eyes.

          Focusing with all his might on time, it seemed he could hear a clock in the back of his mind as he spoke.

           _Tick_.

          “I just wanted to say…”

           _Tock_.

          “Thanks, I guess.”

           _Tick_.

          “Thank you guys.”

           _Tock_.

          “I wasn’t really anybody before I was Carapace,”

           _Tick_.

          “But you guys saw something in me, and you gave me a chance to become something more. So, thank you.”

          No _tock_ came. Cracking an eye open, Nino confirmed his instinct that he really had stopped the flow of time. Traffic below them ground to a halt, the constant movement of Paris stilling in the evening breeze. Careful not to breathe, Nino froze as well, closing his eye once more as he felt his friends pull away.

          “Of course, Carapace,” he heard Ladybug say, sure that she was smiling fondly though he couldn’t see it. He was careful to keep his arm perfectly still even as she slipped from under it. “I think you’re worth more than you realize. We’ve both really enjoyed having you on the team.”

          Chat hummed in agreement, following suit and stepping away from Carapace. “Yeah, you’ve really been… Carapace?”

          Man, not breathing was not easy. Wayzz had not warned him sufficiently of this. He felt the Kwami chide him from the back of his mind, but did not retaliate. Don’t move, don’t breathe.

          “Carapace?” Ladybug asked, concern seeping into her voice. “Are you okay?”

          There was a slight shuffling, then a gasp. “My lady… You might want to look at this.”

          More shuffling, another gasp.

          “Akuma?” Ladybug’s voice was devoid of concern, steel and determination taking its place.

          “Probably. Let’s go.” Nino heard the click of Chat’s staff hitting the platform, and was allowed briefly to hope that me might be allowed to breathe, but Ladybug postponed his release.

          “Wait, Chat…”

          “Hm?”

          “We can’t just leave him up here. What if the Akuma knocks down the tower, or something?”

          Chat hummed, tapping his staff on the platform. “I think it’ll be fine. He’s probably safer up here than he would be at street level.”

          Ladybug hesitated, then sighed. Nino heard the zing of her yo-yo string and the click of Chat’s staff as the heroes left, but waited a few extra seconds before sucking in a gasp. Shaking out his rigid limbs, he stepped forward to peer over the balcony and watch as his teammates zipped away. It was eerie, in a way, to see Paris completely still, but comforting to know its cause. He felt a wave of guilt knowing that Chat and Ladybug thought that the city was in danger, but once again comforted himself with the fact that the end result would be beneficial for all. He just hoped that neither of them would kill him when they found out he was to blame.

 

_**[prompt](https://instagram.com/p/BiHCmwHHvIe/) ** _

**Author's Note:**

> this is like my 4th attempt at writing these notes. i think i should probably sleep.
> 
> uhh so thank you so much for reading! again, prompt is embedded right above here since i dont know how links work in notes. chapter two (and probably three) are not yet written but that will change soon. they also will not be in nino's pov, but alternating between adrien and marinette, so if youre tired of nino's silly rambling then dont leave yet! because its over now, youre free.
> 
> please dont hesitate in saying what you think of this idea so far, and please please please point out grammar, spelling, and mechanical errors. again, this is completely unedited, i havent even read it once over.  
> your comments always make my day, and of course kudos are always appreciated.
> 
> thank you so much for reading! keep an eye out for chapter two!


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